Senior living operators are supplementing revenue and offsetting costs by charging residents for add-on services like cable and internet, food and pets.
A recent Bild and Co. survey of more than 250 communities found senior living communities are frequently charging add-on fees for trash services, pets, laundry, additional meals and other services. According to the survey, monthly resident fees for trash services ranged from $60 to $80, while cable, phone and Wi-Fi ranged from $20 to $35. Other fees included additional meal plans – either $6 to $12 per day, or $350 per month – garage space or storage ranging from $45 to $75 per month, and trash services ranging from $60 to $80 monthly.
Pet fees veraged between $600 and $1,200 for a one-time deposit followed by $25 per month afterward, according to the survey.
Operators have enacted increases to the cost of rent and services across the board in 2024 compared to 2023, according to Alyssa Wendrick, Bild and Co. director of data research.
“Overall, BILD has been seeing a slow increase in care costs and amenity costs,” Wendrick said. “This comes as no surprise as the senior living market slowly recovers from the effects of Covid.”
The average cost for assisted living in the surveyed communities was $2,201 per month, and memory care was $3,534 per month. In terms of pricing, 41% of the surveyed memory care communities were all-inclusive, and nearly a quarter included care in base rent but also had additional charges for residents.
More than half of the surveyed communities (55%) did not have an independent living component. Almost 70% of the communities offering independent living did not include care services in their base rent.
Of the surveyed locations, 39% of locations measured care needs through a point system that scaled with resident acuity. Care levels ranged from minimal assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs), costing between $450 and $1,100 on average; to total daily care, medication management, transportation and other services for high-acuity residents, costing between $2,750 to $4,400 on average.